Latest news with #Ukrainianforces
Russia Today
a day ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Ukrainian drone raid leaves 150,000 without power in Russia
A large-scale Ukrainian drone attack overnight has left more than 150,000 residents without electricity in Russia's Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), with additional damage and casualties reported in the southern Rostov Region, local officials have confirmed. The assault began late Monday night and continued for over an hour. Ukrainian forces reportedly launched dozens of UAVs that targeted infrastructure across Donetsk, Makeyevka, and Yasinovataya, causing widespread blackouts after several electrical substations were struck. Local witnesses reported loud explosions and the sound of UAVs across several districts, with air defenses active throughout the night. A major blaze was seen in Donetsk's Kuibyshevsky district, while one drone reportedly crashed into a residential building in the Kievsky district. Emergency crews were deployed to multiple sites. No civilian injuries were reported in Donetsk as of Tuesday morning. In the neighboring Rostov Region, Governor Yury Slyusar confirmed that Ukrainian drones were intercepted over five districts: Kamensk-Shakhtinsky, Salsk, Volgodonsk, Bokovsky, and Tarasovsky. Despite air defenses, several drones struck civilian areas. One fatality was reported in Volgodonsk, where a drone strike damaged a vehicle, killing the driver. A private home in Salsk sustained roof damage and broken windows, while a fire also broke out at a local railway station. At least one passenger train 'was moved to a safe distance' amid the raid, according to Slyusar. Russian Railways (RZhD) reported that train traffic through Salsk station in Rostov Region was temporarily suspended after drone debris caused a fire on a freight train. There were no injuries, and the blaze was quickly contained, the company said. Ukraine has been conducting UAV raids deep into Russian territory for months, often striking residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure. The Russian government has condemned the attacks as 'terrorist acts' that deliberately target civilians. In May, a string of suspected Ukrainian sabotage operations on Russian railroads caused the derailment of a passenger train in Bryansk Region, killing seven civilians and injuring dozens more.
Russia Today
4 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
WATCH Russian war correspondent dodge Ukrainian suicide drone
Russian war correspondent Andrey Filatov on Saturday published dramatic video footage of him narrowly dodging a Ukrainian first-person-view (FPV) suicide drone that exploded just a few meters away from the journalist. The day before, multiple Ukrainian outlets reported that he went missing on the front lines of the conflict. On Saturday, Filatov published a video that showed him riding a motorcycle while being pursued by a Ukrainian suicide drone. When warned of an incoming UAV, he turns the motorbike aside and ducks as it whirrs past and explodes just a few meters ahead of him. According to the journalist, he was checking a radio interference blind spot along a Russian logistics route, which was created when an electronic jammer post along it was moved. This made the area vulnerable to Ukrainian radio-controlled drones. Russian war correspondent and drone specialist Andrey Filatov survives an extremely close call in the Pokrovsk direction '[Ukrainian forces] began to see further, and the road ended up in radio shadow,' he wrote in a Telegram post on Saturday. He rode too far ahead of his companions, who had a jamming unit mounted on their car, and had to 'dodge' the drone, Filatov explained. The development of jamming technology has made radio-controlled drones far less effective and has increasingly forced both sides in the Ukraine conflict to use optic cable-controlled UAVs. These drones are slower, but are entirely immune to radio interference. The area where Filatov was attacked is situated along the Krasnoarmeysk (Pokrovsk) sector of the frontline, where Russian forces are advancing to encircle the major Ukrainian logistics hub city.
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Elon Musk 'ordered Starlink coverage blackout' during crucial Ukraine counterattack
ELON Musk allegedly ordered a shutdown of Starlink coverage in parts of Ukraine during a crucial counteroffensive at the beginning of the Russian invasion, it has been reported. The billionaire's command allegedly led to a communications blackout while Ukrainian forces attempted to retake the port city of Kherson in the south of the country in September 2022. The communication blackout, where staff at the American tech firm deactivated at least 100 Starlink terminals after being instructed to, reportedly caused the attack to fail, according to Reuters, which spoke with three people who were familiar with the demand. According to reports, the blackout caused Ukrainian soldiers to panic as drones surveilling Russian forces went dark, and long-range artillery units, reliant on Starlink to aim at their targets, struggled to hit them. READ MORE: 'He belongs in The Hague': Keir Starmer fiercely criticised over Gaza speech Although Ukrainian forces were able to reclaim Kherson, the incident was reported to have damaged the country's trust in the technology, along with shocking Starlink employees. One of the three people who were familiar with the instruction claimed it enabled Musk to take 'the outcome of a war into his own hands'. The Tesla-owner reportedly grew concerned that Ukrainian forces' advancements could provoke nuclear retaliation from Vladimir Putin. A spokesperson for SpaceX, the aerospace company that owns Starlink, told Reuters the reporting of the incident is 'inaccurate'. In March, Musk posted on his social media platform, X/Twitter: 'To be extremely clear, no matter how much I disagree with the Ukraine policy, Starlink will never turn off its terminals.' Starlink, which went live in 2019, is a satellite company that beams data across its network and is the world's largest satellite operator. It provides customers with internet access in remote and unreliable locations and has a network of around 8000 satellites in orbit. It has been a key tool in Ukraine's defence, as Musk has provided the country with more than 50,000 Starlink terminals during the war. The network has allowed Ukrainians to speak to relatives across the world, and President Zelensky uses the network to transmit broadcasts to the nation. It is also used by Ukrainian forces on the battlefield to communicate and is used to guide drones and long-range artillery units.
Russia Today
13-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Civilians trapped after Ukrainian airstrike hits apartment block
A Ukrainian airstrike has destroyed a five-story residential building in the Russian town of Aleshki in Kherson Region, trapping an unknown number of civilians under the rubble, according to local authorities. The strike occurred on Friday, around seven kilometers from the Dnieper River, which divides Russia and Ukraine. Kherson Region Governor Vladimir Saldo said the building collapsed after being hit by two bombs. 'The enemy has hit a residential building in Aleshki in an airstrike,' Saldo told Russian news agencies. 'The building has collapsed. Civilians are trapped underneath.' Saldo alleged that Ukrainian forces were using drones to hinder rescue efforts, targeting emergency crews attempting to reach the site. 'Dozens of people are trapped under the rubble,' he wrote in a statement on Telegram. Ukrainian forces have regularly carried out cross-border strikes into Russian territory and Russian in recent months, often using drones and Western-supplied weapons. On July 8, a Ukrainian drone strike killed four civilians, including a five-year-old boy, at a public beach in the city of Kursk during celebrations for the Day of Family, Love, and Fidelity. Last week, four people were killed and several others injured when Ukrainian forces launched a HIMARS rocket attack on Donetsk, according to local officials. The Russian Foreign Ministry has accused Kiev of pursuing a 'deliberate policy' of striking civilian areas. 'It is a deliberate policy that has already been elevated to the level of state doctrine,' Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement last month, citing alleged atrocities in Donbass, including drone attacks on homes and the mass killing of elderly people. Authorities in Kherson say rescue operations in Aleshki will continue despite the threat of further drone attacks. The number of casualties has yet to be confirmed.
Russia Today
11-07-2025
- Politics
- Russia Today
Russia asks chemical weapons watchdog to investigate Ukraine
Russia has asked the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to investigate its claim that Ukrainian troops are using toxic munitions. 'The Russian side continues to document not only instances of Ukrainian nationalists using toxic chemicals and military-grade poison agents, but also evidence of a widespread system for their mass production in Ukraine,' Russian envoy Vladimir Tarabrin said at a session of the OPCW Executive Council in The Hague on Thursday. The diplomat added that Moscow has requested the OPCW to dispatch experts to verify its findings. Earlier this month, Russia announced the discovery of a makeshift lab allegedly used by Ukrainian troops to store chloropicrin – a choking agent banned under the Chemical Weapons Convention. According to Moscow, Ukrainian forces have dropped toxic substances from drones. Ukraine also asked the OPCW earlier this month to investigate the alleged use of banned chemical munitions by Russia. Last Friday, Germany and the Netherlands accused the Russian army of dropping choking agents on Ukrainian trenches. Tarabrin rejected the accusations and accused the 'pro-war faction' in the EU of 'waging a campaign to falsify evidence.'
